As a young adult, one of my mentors was an outdoor educator named Keith King. He taught me that stopping to reflect on experience is at least as important as experience itself. He introduced me to John Dewey and the whole experiential education tradition, and he helped me learn to help others ask good questions.

As a priest, I find that reflecting on our lives in the light of the gospel is a core spiritual practice through which we find meaning and identity. The gospel comes to us in scripture, it comes in sacrament, and sometimes it comes through space where Christ is made manifest in the design and hosting.

I had the privilege of joining in one such space on Tuesday: the Black Seed Writers Group gathering at the cathedral. Here a wide array of people - housed and unhoused, young and old, veteran writers and those who've not picked up a pen in a long time - came to put into writing their reflections on their experiences. James Parker (in photo) and other MANNA staff offered calm, encouraging attention as needed, gently coached those having a hard time starting, and made sure the soothing music was just loud enough, the iced tea just cold enough, and the welcome just warm enough to allow people to settle in. As I watched people write, I could feel them collecting themselves, sorting the wheat from the chaff of experience, and being steadied just by the invitation to write about themselves.